Archive | October 2013

The Days of the Dead are approaching, otherwise known as All Hallows Eve or the ancient pagan holy-day of Samhain. Dressing up in costume has been a universal part of celebrating or observing the waning middle days of the autumn, halfway between the September Equinox and the Winter Solstice. In Mexico and most of Latin America, the costumes are homages to the dead and dearly departed. Skeletal and ghostly visages, tattered clothing is accompanied by feasting and celebrating the freedom of the dead. In North America and parts of Europe, there is a nod to the ancient ways when children and some adults dress up as spooks, vampires, werewolves, and other dreaded icons of superstition and the netherworlds.

However, for some time the masks have come represent popular (or unpopular) political figures, celebrities, cartoon characters or movie heroes. The mask that has become almost universal during the past few years is the visage of the movie and comic book character “V”, a persona which has been adopted by freedom movements globally as a symbol of resistance and revolution. The anniversary for the original anarchist that inspired the book and film “V for Vendetta” is based on also fast approaches…the 5th of November: Guy Fawkes Day, which is celebrated only in the U.K.

We may be going to parties, playing dress up or applying makeup as a way to disguise our real face, but no matter whether we are young or old, the fun is found in becoming temporarily anonymous…secret, clandestine. Then, we may attempt to be or do what we dare not in ‘real’ life. We escape the familiar and drift into the macabre. The irony here is that in that we are most aware of how little anonymity we still retain in our super-technological surveillance and social networking culture. Perhaps Halloween is becoming one of the last opportunities we have to become anonymous on a temporary basis.

The astrological weather for the next month is mixed and volatile. “Expect the unexpected” is the motto for November, making prediction and prognosticating a risky proposition. So, on to the forecast and analysis.

Mercury Retrograde in Scorpio – October 21st

We’ve been under this influence for about a week now, and what makes this one Mercury Retro unusual is that it is in Scorpio, where Saturn is at the moment. There have been a number of excellent posts and analysis about this transit already, so I’m not going to wax further on it, except to mention that it is occurring at the same time as a major tension point in early November, followed by a Solar Eclipse. This combination might cause some folks to feel quite frustrated in trying to get new projects moving forward, as the big outer planets Saturn, Uranus and Pluto command center stage. Mercury will retrograde towards Saturn, where they’ll meet at the 13th Degree of Scorpio on October 29th, just before the eve of the Days of the Dead (October 30th-November 1st). Try not to get too impatient as these two have a conversation that hones in on Scorpionic themes: jealousy, having or keeping secrets – or the sudden revealing of secrets (“Hello Angela Merkel…you’ve been spied on for a decade!”) unrequited hopes, dreams, desires and passions, and revenge (ouch…that hurt!). Part of Saturn in Scorpio is the restructuring and revealing of dirty little secrets, regardless if they are sexual, like the Jimmy Saville or Catholic paedophilia scandals. Or be they political, like the NSA and U.K. GCHQ spying scandals (along with the damage control around them). With Mercury retrograde, this is also an excellent time to dig deeply into one’s beliefs and acquired conditioning, especially as regards human intimate communications and relating, and also around one’s deeply held fears or feelings of inadequacy. What is really yours, versus what you took on board from all the people or concepts you’ve been exposed to since birth?

As I’ve been observing what is showing up on many different newsfeeds over the past two weeks, I am getting that this date may loom larger in our memories than anticipated. It is another step up in intensity, preparing us for the next one in April 2014, which is ostensibly the peak of the what began in June of 2012. This time Uranus is retrograde in Aries, whereas Pluto is gaining forward momentum in Capricorn. Pluto is now wielding the advantage, and although there have been more significant blows to the old guard power structures that are held within the individual and collective psyche, this time period may manifest as a counterpunch to that, invoking an ‘Empire Strikes Back’ theme.

The first thing I watch is what’s happening in Nature, both terrestrial and celestial. Then, in no particular order, what’s happening in my energy fields, awareness, and especially my body. Next up is what is playing out in the political, financial, and religious arenas, followed by whatever is trending on alternative websites (re: spiritual concepts, conspiracy, etc.) and social media. I always pay attention to what other astrologers are writing about too.

We all have our filters operating, and this is why Uranus is so fascinating to me energetically and archetypally. It always seems to trash our expectations and our perceptions. And even though Pluto’s persona as Death allows it to roam mostly undetected through human activity, it is the Trump card in all endeavors. Uranus says “all things must change” and Pluto adds, “All things must pass.” Interesting that Miley Cyrus is riding high on the popularity of a hit song entitled ‘Wrecking Ball’, as this perfectly expresses the tension between Uranus and Pluto at this time.

Because Uranus is the energy of surprise, I reiterate that whatever I may prognosticate here is subject to change without notice. Reader beware! So, to illustrate the pattern, here are some items of interest to illustrate the upcoming showdown…number 4 in this gunslinger episode of a celestial ‘High Noon’

These are just a few examples of the many hot items in circulation in the last four weeks.

Essentially, since this transit began it has been mostly about awakening the majority of humanity that has been conditioned and repressed, but it is also unhinging some of the doors of belief in those of us that consider ourselves already with the program. For most human beings, there hasn’t seemed to be any other alternative than to get along in the system as best as one could, or resort to armed and violent resistance. Even those options are now dwindling, for resistance to change is not an option, and armed insurrection against heavily armed ruling elite won’t work either.

Since this transit occurs under the Mercury Retrograde, I feel that each one of us is being called to examine those beliefs that we have accepted about our being powerless to change anything, or that we even have a right to change anything or perhaps everything. With Uranus also in retrograde motion, rash or sudden moves without examination of the consequences is probably to be discouraged. Uranus goes stationary direct on Dec.18th. Things may be very interesting this coming Christmas season, as from this point forward we will be more inclined to act rather than continue inner work or outer discussions.

Solar Eclipse – November 3rd

Nov 3 Solar Eclipse. This is one interesting chart. Uranus and Pluto are still in tight square. Saturn, Sun and Moon all conjunct around 11 degrees of Scorpio, with Mercury and the North Node not far behind at 7 degrees of Scorpio. There’s a Grand Trine between Mars in Virgo, Pluto in Capricorn, and the South Node in Taurus…and earthly focus. Meanwhile Chiron is in an awkward relationship to the Mercury/North Node conjunction, trying to apply a healing and soothing balm to the situation, but not quite sure where to place the ointment. Chiron also is in trine (easy flow) to the Sun-Moon Eclipse, and adds a patina of grace to the stresses invoked by eclipses. The ancients viewed solar eclipses as mostly bad news…and for good reason. Natural disasters are almost always a feature of eclipses, especially solar ones. The indigenous peoples thought that the Moon was stealing the life-giving powers of the Sun, and from a metaphysical perspective, this it pretty accurate. There is a potential here for violent reactions to calls for more change, liberty, freedom or justice. The powers in charge (Pluto in Capricorn) clamping down on the opposition (the 99%), or marginalizing action through intimidation, more taxes, hidden costs, or punitive fines and fees. Keep everyone in survivalist mode, and they’re easier to govern.

Rather than spin your wheels over the local, regional or world situation, cultivate a deeper awareness of your personal desires and see how they might actually contribute to altering the course of consciousness on a larger scale. Meditate locally, manifest locally and globally. Opting out of the system, in whatever way and in small chunks at a time, while at the same time cultivating the idea of shared or cooperative living arrangements, may be the next intuitive strategy. Smaller is better, mobility over static security. Yoga stretches for the mind, heart and soul, not just the body.

In summary, we are here living in these times to midwife this planet and our human brothers and sisters out of a no-win predicament. There is no such thing as infinite growth, at least economically or financially. Religions need to fall apart, even the New Age religion, if we are to free our dogmas up enough to receive the clarity we will require to move out of our self-destructive tendencies. As Gaia goes, so do we, so we are being asked to cultivate our symbiotic relationship with Nature and the planet more and more consciously. Starting with a sense of gratitude is an excellent practice to employ.

What a time to be alive!

Until the next update, journey well.

Peace,
Isaac

Isaac operates his counselling, intuitive mentoring and astrology sessions via phone, Skype and in-person in the south of Ireland. He is also an authorized representative for Phi Harmonics EnergyDOTs, for protection from EMF radiation and geopathic stress.

Autumn is arriving in the Northern Hemisphere. Wet leaves are falling here in Ireland, and the smell of decaying vegetation and the wan light that filters through the clouds all confirm it. Halloween is just around the corner, also known as Hallowmas, and if you live in certain Latin countries, it is time for the three day celebration of the ‘Day of the Dead’. Time to dig the woolly jumpers and Wellington boots out of the trunks or closets, and make sure our heating systems and chimney flues are ready. After all, to quote a now popular meme, “…winter is coming.”

Another response to the cool and damper conditions is the sense of needing to feel cosy and warm, so if we are in a relationship, the desire for closeness is accentuated. Besides the obvious thermal advantages, it is the feeling of connection and protection that we crave. When we’re drawn closer to others of our own kind, whether it is one person or an extended family, everything can feel brighter and better. Even the growing number of people who prefer the single life and do not have a live-in companion will also feel this, and I am sure that they will seek to engage in more social activities, and take advantage of any opportunity to snuggle up with someone. Cuddle parties are becoming more popular. Not surprising…and no matter which hemisphere on Mother Earth you reside in, there’s more than just a change of the seasons behind it.

Human beings are highly social creatures, and even though the sense of being an individual has been part of the development of the human experience for thousands of years, in our pre-conscious state that existed long before the invention of agriculture, economies, city states, countries and nations, we were pretty much living symbiotically with the natural surroundings and within the context of a clan or tribal community. Our sense of ‘self’ was inexorably connected to the sense of ‘us’, and we shared a mutual concern for food, shelter, health, companionship and safety in uncertain conditions. Since the advent of our brief sojourn into an industrial-technological society, the rise of individualism has given way to an artificial tribal identity via the global communications network. Corporate identities carry more weight in our consciousness than thinking that we are related to flesh and blood counterparts. This artificial sense of ‘us’ is replicated continually in social media, sports and entertainment archetypes (reality television shows, major sports teams, serialized dramas, etc.), and is constantly spun by politicians to reinforce and intellectual and emotional dominance nationally, regionally and even globally (i.e. ‘…a coalition of civilized nations’)

However we view our virtual interconnectedness, we still are denied one thing through our electronic mediums. The innate human need to give and receive touch remains an elusive factor in cyberspace, and in fact, it will never be simulated there successfully. Even if it is technologically feasible to create the simulation of kinetic contact, there is no circuit or programming that can replicate the consciousness that is behind the touch. This power of tactile communication is something our species is now yearning for, and indeed, if we are to survive as a species, we must satisfy in some way. We’ve been starving for it, while wondering through the digital desert landscape.

The growing popularity of tantric workshops, massage and somatic therapies, and the relative newcomer on the scene – the cuddle party, is evidence of how many are seeking to re-establish the neural connections that respond to touch. I first experienced non-demanding touch while attending a weekend workshop called ‘Naka Ima’, which translated from Japanese means “inside the now.” All of the support staff cuddled with the attendees almost all weekend. It was incredibly supportive when we were going through our rough bits.

There are many kinds of touch, and many kinds of physical manipulation, that can offer us a sense of connection or even provide healing from mental, emotional or physical traumas. Some may feel that touch cannot do what it’s being advertised to do, that is, replace traditional therapies or reinforce the standard societal bonding systems. Touch is discouraged in the clinical environment to avoid the possibility of transference of affections from a client to the therapist. Incidental touch, touch that is not part of a typical routine in the course of a therapeutic massage is routinely discouraged, for much the same reasons, though I feel it is more a part of the social taboos we’ve erected to respect boundaries. After I moved to Scotland, I discovered the ‘towel dance’ in which the massage practitioner was constantly readjusting and repositioning the towels covering parts of the body not being massaged. Not wanting to see too much flesh, and be tempted by it, was probably the rationale. This kind of massage was, as you can imagine, not as enjoyable as what I was used to in the more laid-back environs of Eugene, Oregon.

Out of our five physical senses, the sense of touch possesses some unique characteristics. The many reported and purported cases of spontaneous healing conferred from human being to another usually happened through the medium of touch. Religious and spiritual ceremonies and initiations almost always involve touch at some point in the process. This includes Reiki initiations, baptisms, the gifting of Shaktipat, and other forms of activating an aspirant’s inner spiritual awakening. Touch combined with an understanding of energy and sensitivity, and administered with love, can literally erase many traumas, especially those traumas that remain from sexual abuse.

In the realm of sacred (conscious) sexuality, of which Tantra is but a part, the power of touch to open and heal a human being from the main conditioned responses that have been learned through shame, guilt and judgment. Some of the forms that have come forward for dealing with these deeply held patterns are designed to heal people of ‘genital armoring’, which prevents someone from freely expressing and enjoying their natural sexuality. Most of these forms focus on finding the resistance or pain, and working with that to help the individual release the blockages. However, my own personal experience has shown me that nurturing touch, touch that goes slowly, gently and lovingly, not only removes the physical and emotional blockages, but also dissolves the charge on the original wound. The power of touch is discovered in how much heart and presence you can express through it. The ability to heal is inherently in the individual seeking healing…the touch of grace signals the person seeking wholeness to allow themselves to let go…to trust in Life once again.

It will be risky, and it will take some measure of courage, but to reacquaint ourselves with the depth of our being – and everyone else’s beingness, we must become more attuned to touch as a vehicle of awakening and transformation. Body-centered therapies and practices usually encourage the individual to focus on what one does and experiences within our own body and space, or as something you only ‘get’ from another. To feel interactive touch, it is necessary to fully receive with the need to give, and to fully give without the need to receive. We are probably more habitually comfortable with giving than receiving, so I will recommend focusing on the receiving first, until you don’t feel resistance or the compulsion to ‘give something in return.’ It’s not easy!

If you are wondering how going for touch in a more proactive and intimate way will begin to have positive effects on your life, and possibly everyone else’s life, then all I can say to that is “what do we have to lose?” If you’re afraid you might lose your sense of individuality, well, that can’t really happen. Besides, how most Westerners have been conducting themselves for a few millennia hasn’t really contributed much to engendering more trust towards each other, so it may be time to add loving and graceful touch so that we may actually recreate the experience of egalitarian interdependence that our primordial ancestors enjoyed.

We aren’t really individuals, for we haven’t fully individuated yet. That is to say, we are not yet fully knowing who we are and expressing it without censorship or judgment. To be fully individual is to be one with all of Life…naturally. This is true enlightenment, for it doesn’t make value judgments about the body or the consciousness that creates and maintains it. It sees that they are completely the same thing. This is what we learn through the magic of touch, for it ends our false perception of separation and isolation, of being an ‘I’ in the midst of ‘they’.

The grace of touch can create bonding without bondage, unity without destroying the experience of the Self, and cooperation instead of competition. Sharing becomes innately more natural and sensible when we lose the idea that we might lose something of our integrity through when we feel drawn to wanting to touch someone who is in pain, or someone who longs to know that they are loved and not cast adrift and alone in the world. Touch heals. Touch helps us regain our humanity, which in turn opens us to the touch of something invisible in our hearts.

Sexuality is an inherent part of our spiritual homecoming, and I don’t mean nicey-nicey, hearts and flowers romance. Connecting with our earthiness, with the Earth herself, will transform our biology and bring it back in harmony with Nature and the Cosmos. In the last issue, in my essay “The Longest War on Earth”, I encouraged readers to get the book “Sex at Dawn” by Christopher Ryan Ph.D. and Cacilda Jethá, MD. The title is a play on words, but the content, and our understanding and embracing of it, may just be essential to our survival as a species. Sharing, egalitarianism, and non-possessive intimate relationships existed in the primordial utopia that came before the Earth cataclysms of 12,000 years ago, which propelled us out of foraging societies, and into the invention or agriculture, hoarding, scarcity, competition, patriarchy, war, disease and death. Such is progress.

The roots of this are much, much older, but suffice it to say that there was one thing that these cultures understood: the chances for surviving and thriving were enhanced because of mutual sharing and cooperation. This also included touch and sexuality. After finishing the book, I now recognize why I had such a difficult time acclimating back into human society in 2003 after spending three weeks of deep communion with the dolphins (and the wild environment ) of the Big Island of Hawaii. The abrasiveness of that contact after living ‘in the raw’ during that time was illuminating…and extremely difficult.

Humanity will not solve all of its problems and challenges just by going to a cuddle party. But for those brief moments that you and the person you are cuddling with experience, you will cease feeling alone, separate, isolated. As you focus on the pleasure of being embraced and embracing, just imagine yourself as this Earth. The Earth holds us all in her embrace in each moment we are drawing breath, and shares everything it offers without hesitation. If we are the children of a loving Earth and a Benevolent Source Consciousness, then we cannot lose anything by opening to touch, except our fear and loneliness.

As we travel through this era of an ever-changing and uncertain world, the encouragement to ‘love one another’ will take on a deeper significance. Perhaps the sheer desire for connection, companionship, and touch will transcend the realm of a need born out of fear, to a fulfilment born out of compassion and the sure knowing that we are all that we have. Then, the touch of grace may just inspire us to see the truth of our predicament, and open to channel something through that propels back into the Garden…back to innocence. It won’t happen without work, but sure as heck won’t happen without play and trust.

Enough with the sad stories…let’s create a new script. Go gracefully…and touch with love.